Ruckus in Goa Assembly as oppn MLAs protest against rail, road projects

Opposition legislators on Friday stormed into the well of the Goa Assembly to protest against three projects which they claimed will turn the state into a coal import hub.

After failing to pass a resolution seeking the scrapping of these projects, MLAs of Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party, Goa Forward Party and Revolutionary Goans Party rushed into the well.

They demanded voting on private members' resolution on scrapping of the projects, moved by GFP's Vijai Sardesai and Congress's Altone D'Costa.

Sardesai alleged that the three "linear projects" were being promoted to turn Goa into a coal hub by increasing imports through the Mormugao Port Trust.

The three controversial projects are double-tracking of South Western Railway line, widening of the highway between Karnataka and Goa and laying of a powerline.

All these projects run through forested areas adjoining Karnataka.

Defending the BJP government on the issue, Environment Minister Nilesh Cabral said cases related to these projects were before the Supreme Court.

These projects were planned considering the future requirement of railway traffic, road traffic and power generation, he said.

The state government has time and again made it clear that it will not be "exceeding the import of coal, Cabral added.

But the ruckus continued in the House, after which Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar adjourned the proceedings till Monday.

Speaking outside the House, Sardesai later accused the Speaker of acting in a partisan way by not allowing division of votes.

It would have made clear who supported the environment and who supported coal, he said.

Tawadkar rubbished the allegation stating that opposition benches had coordination issues and asked for voting late.

I had given them enough time but the opposition benches could not do it because of their internal differences, the Speaker told reporters.